Last weekend, Netflix uploaded a video on their Youtube Channel titled “Netflix Presents: The Witcher’s Bestiary.” This 12-minute long video featured all the terrifying monsters that Geralt of Rivia encountered in Netflix’s adaptation of The Witcher. This includes their fascinating mythological origins as well as their in-game description.
You can check out the video below:
Since we’re a big fan of The Witcher, this video inspired us to create this article to give further insights about the monsters you’ve seen in Netflix’s The Witcher series.
Let’s get to know these monsters and their origins:
Kikimore/Kikimora
IN-GAME: Kikimores is one of The Witcher monsters featured in both the game and Netflix adaptation. These monsters behave like ants. They are divided into protective warriors and industrious workers. Similar to ants, their lives are centered on protecting their queen.
There are three types of kikimores in The Witcher:
- queens
- warriors
- workers
Kikimore queens usually stay in quiet and damp places, where she can lay her eggs. While kikimore warriors protect the queen and kikimore workers as they dig tunnels, looking for food.
MYTHOLOGY: In Slavic mythology, kikimoras are female house spirits. They usually live behind the stove or in the cellar. According to beliefs, they produce similar noises to those made by the mice to get food. While in Russian folklore, they are said to cause nightmares and sleep paralysis.
According to stories, there are two kinds of kikimoras. The first one comes from the forest, while the second one lives in the swamp.
Sylvans (Animal-Human Hybrids)
IN-GAME: Sylvans are described to be cruel, greedy, and treacherous. They are rare woodland creatures with the combined traits of goats and rotund men. They pose little danger to humans but like to play bothersome tricks like eating crops from their fields.
In The Witcher series, they are also called willowers, deovels, pucks, or yakshas.
MYTHOLOGY: Sylvans can be associated with Fauns from Ancient Rome. They are half-human and half-goat. And the Romans believed that fauns bring fear to men traveling in lonely and deserted places. In Ancient Roman mythology, they worship a god called Faunus, who lives in an enchanted forest.
Striga
IN-GAME: A striga is described as a human woman who is transformed into a monster by a curse. Due to the curse, she is filled with hatred towards humans and devours them without any second thoughts. A striga can only come out on a full moon to haunt and hides in a sarcophagus during the day. The striga is one of the best Witcher monsters that was featured in the game.
Similar to the novel, the only documented example of a striga’s curse is what happened to Adda White, the daughter of Foltest and his sister. She and her mother, who died in childbirth, were laid to rest in a single tomb. But Adda didn’t die; she grew inside the sarcophagus for seven years and emerged as a striga to hunt during the night.
MYTHOLOGY: Striga is otherwise known as shtriga found in Albanian mythology and folklore. They are said to be a vampiric witch who sucks the blood of infants at night while everyone is fast asleep. It is also said that they can turn into a flying insect, either a moth or a fly. And they are often depicted as a woman with a disfigured face and a hateful stare.
Selkiemore/Selkie Maw
NOVEL: The Selkiemore wasn’t seen in the game and in the Netflix adaptation. However, it was mentioned in the books. A selkiemore is a water-dwelling monster that dwells on deep bodies of water to feed on plankton. Folks often referred to them as Selkie Maw. Hardly anyone has seen this monster. But according to folktales, selkiemore are humongous beasts with thousands of terrifying teeth that line a mouth so big that it can swallow an entire village.
MYTHOLOGY: The Selkiemore might have been inspired by the Charybdis, a sea monster from Greek mythology. It can swallow large amounts of water and belch them out to create giant whirlpools that can destroy ships.
Roachhound
NOVEL: The Roachhound or Cockroach Hound is more popularly known as the Krallach. This monster is a species related to improved Idrs that are bred and used by rogue mages. Unlike Idrs, they are further enhanced with metal blades and armored elements to make them harder to kill. They are intentionally created to hunt and kill for pleasure rather than for survival.
Roachhounds weren’t featured in the three games. However, there is a monster that Geralt had to fight in the game called the Frightener. The Frightener looks similar to the Roachhound. The only difference is that they are way bigger.
MYTHOLOGY: While there is no specific monster similar to the Krallach or Roachhound. It sounds familiar to the Tsuchigumo from Japanese mythology. It is described as a spider-like yokai or demon that lives in forests and mountains, and prey on humans.
The Doppler
IN-GAME: Dopplers are shapeshifters who can take the form of anyone or any living beast that they have encountered. This earned them the names shifter, mimic, double, and imitator. However, their shapeshifting abilities have limitations. First, they can only take the form of someone with the same weight. And they won’t be able to shapeshift if their skin touched a silver.
MYTHOLOGY: Dopplers are like doppelgängers. They are the double of a living person, often portrayed as a paranormal phenomenon usually seen as a harbinger of bad luck. There is an old belief that to meet one’s double is a sign that one’s death is imminent because only one of the two can exist at the same time.
Djinn
IN-GAME: Djinns are powerful creatures in The Witcher series, they are capable of doing great feats. If a person captures a Djinn, it is bound to his captor and has to fulfill three wishes. Once they have fulfilled all the wishes, only then they can be free.
MYTHOLOGY: Djinn or genie are found in the Arabian and Islamic mythology. Djinns are spiritual creatures that are neither innately good or evil. They can choose whether to be good or evil, depending on whether they accept God’s guidance.
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Want to know more about these monsters? All of The Witcher games have a bestiary, which is a volume that contains information on different creatures and monsters that players can find in the game.
References: https://witcher.fandom.com/wiki/Witcher_Wiki
